School brief

Natalie Whitcomb, an earth science professor at Polk State College in Winter Haven, Fla., received the 2013 Outstanding Educator Award from the Gulf Coast Association of Geological Societies during the GCAGS Annual Conference in New Orleans, La., last month. A Gloucester High School graduate, Whitcomb holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in geology from the University of Mary Washington and Duke University, respectively, and is working toward a doctorate in education at Nova Southeastern University.